Public Access to the Water
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Public Access to the Water Being mostly surrounded by the Gulf of Mexico and Tampa Bay, recreational pursuits in Pinellas County are often connected to the water. Beach activities and boating are prime examples. Statewide, concern over the availability of the public’s access to sandy beaches and coastal waters has taken on increasing importance with the continued development of coastal areas. As the most densely populated county in Florida, Pinellas County has experienced extensive private development along its shorelines for the past several decades. Such development presented challenges regarding sufficient public access to the shoreline. In response, the Pinellas County Board of County Commissioners took on the task of acquiring coastal land suitable for public access for both its citizens and visitors, and has been committed to this task for many years. Since 1989, six County beach and/or shoreline access parks were opened to the public: St. Pete Beach Access Park (1989), Treasure Island Beach Access Park (1992), Indian Shores/Tiki Gardens Beach Access Park (1995), Indian Rocks Beach Access Park (1995), Boca Ciega Millennium Park (2001) and Wall Springs Park (2004). This commitment to shoreline access, associated with the comprehensive commitment to providing recreation and open space for the citizens and visitors of Pinellas County, is expected to continue into the future. BEACH ACCESS Pinellas County has 35 miles of sandy beaches. Most of these are located on a string of barrier islands stretching from Anclote Key south along the western portion of the County down to Mullet Key. These beautiful, white sand beaches and the County’s subtropical climate are major attractions for tourists and seasonal residents, as well as a source of outdoor recreation and environmental appreciation for residents of the county and the Tampa Bay region. Some public beach access sites are narrow pedestrian walkways, accessible only on foot. Others are several acres in area, have parking areas, restrooms, showers and food Pass-a-Grille Beach concessions. The Board of County Commissioners has been successful in coordinating the acquisition of beach access sites, and in funding management efforts for the beaches, along with different municipalities. It is imperative that the public and private interests in Pinellas County’s sandy beaches for both resource protection and public access be balanced since both are important in maintaining the quality of life in Pinellas County. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Recreation, Open Space & Culture Element 7-1 By Florida law, the shoreline seaward of mean high water is the property of the State and open to public use. Consequently, the ability for the public to access the beaches is of the highest concern to the Board of County Commissioners. The following discussion will give an overview of beach access in Pinellas County from a countywide perspective . Public beach access sites in Pinellas County are categorized as follows: • Pedestrian Access : Narrow access ways allowing a person to walk to the beach. On- site parking or other facilities are not usually associated with this type of site. • Street Ends: Public rights-of-way ending at the beach that provide access. On-site parking may or may not be available. • County, State, and Municipal Parks and Recreation Areas : o County: Fort DeSoto, Sand Key, Tiki Gardens, etc. o State: Caladesi Island, Honeymoon Island, Anclote Key o Municipal: Clearwater, St. Petersburg, Pass-a-Grille, etc. • Causeways maintained by either the State or Pinellas County : o State: Courtney Campbell Causeway o County: Belleair Causeway, Dunedin Causeway There are 170 State, County and Municipal public beach access sites in Pinellas County, ranging in size from narrow three-foot wide pedestrian paths to the 29,000 linear feet of beach access at Fort DeSoto County Park. The list includes a few artificial beaches along the shore of Tampa Bay and certain causeways. Eleven of the access sites are available only for municipal residents in Belleair Shore and Redington Beach. Appendix B identifies each beach access site by jurisdiction, as well as the amenities offered at each. County Beach Access Parks, covered earlier in this Element, are also listed in Table 3 . The adequacy of beach access and parking facilities in Pinellas County are measured using Florida Department of Environmental Protection guidelines for granting funds for beach renourishment. The guideline states that at least two access sites and 100 public parking spaces should be available for every one mile of beach. The result of a recent analysis of the County’s barrier islands concluded that the standard was being adequately met, with one exception: central Clearwater Beach is slightly deficient in parking based on the standard. Although a parking deficiency was found, public bus service is provided by the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority from the mainland to this area and along the Clearwater Beach barrier island. Please refer to Table 10 for a breakdown of the latest attendance figures and available parking spaces at County parks with beach access. The fact that 8,409,591 people attended County parks with beach access in fiscal year 2005/2006 attests to their popularity. County-owned beach access parks, discussed in a previous section, are shown in Figure 4. Regional and selected municipal public beach access areas (those larger than one acre) are depicted in Figure 10. See also Appendix B, which includes information on location, jurisdiction, acreage, length of beachfront, boat ramps, parking and other facilities provided, as well as a map series depicting all beach access points. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Recreation, Open Space & Culture Element 7-2 TABLE 10 ATTENDANCE AND PARKING SPACES AT COUNTY PARKS WITH BEACH ACCESS ATTENDANCE PARKING SPACES COUNTY PARK FY 2005-2006 AVAILABLE Fort De Soto Park 3,179,504 3,242 Fred Howard Park 2,132,469 1,035 Indian Rocks Beach Access 340,662 79 Madeira Beach Access 245,396 100 Redington Shores Beach Access 374,833 180 Sand Key Park 1,145,312 778 St. Pete Beach Access 494,554 235 Treasure Island Beach Access 316,449 67 Tiki Gardens/Indian Shores Beach 180,412 172 Access Totals 8,409,591 5,888 Source: Pinellas County Department of Culture, Education and Leisure, 2006 SHORELINE ACCESS In addition to beach access, it is important to evaluate what is termed shoreline access - tracts of land or facilities that provide public access to the shoreline other than sandy beaches. In most instances, these access points are publicly owned and include causeways, street ends, natural preserves, and private and public piers and bridges. Shoreline access provides the public with a variety of uses, such as open space, boat launching facilities, recreation facilities and important opportunities for scenic vistas of the County’s shoreline and open waters. Public shoreline access is important in preserving both physical and visual access to the County’s coastal assets. Parks Parks provides many of the opportunities available to the public for shoreline access. The largest parks are operated by the Board of County Commissioners. Philippe Park on Old Tampa Bay and War Veterans’ Memorial Park on Long Bayou offer users shoreline access. Please refer to the ‘Resource-Based Regional Parks’ section of this Element for a description ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Recreation, Open Space & Culture Element 7-3 FIGURE 10 REGIONAL & SELECTED MUNICIPAL PUBLIC BEACH ACCESS AREAS IN PINELLAS COUNTY ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Recreation, Open Space & Culture Element 7-4 of each of the parks under the auspices of the Pinellas County Board of County Commissioners, including the two newest sites that provide shoreline access: Boca Ciega Millennium Park on Boca Ciega Bay and Wall Springs Park on Boggy Bayou. Two additional sites that remain under development, the Belle Harbor Marina in Tarpon Springs and the Sutherland Bayou Boat Ramp (formerly the Palm Harbor Resort) in Palm Harbor, were purchased in 2006. Many municipal parks, often small in size, are unevenly distributed along the shoreline. These access sites provide either limited facilities (e.g., an open space vista) or a number of facilities including restrooms, picnic shelters, docks, fishing piers and boat ramps. Causeways The causeways in Pinellas County provide numerous opportunities for access to the shoreline by actually creating shoreline where there was none before. Some of the causeways in the County include the Courtney Campbell Causeway, Howard Park Causeway, Memorial Causeway, Pinellas Bayway, the causeway leading to the Sunshine Skyway Bridge, Gandy Causeway and the causeway leading to the Howard Frankland Bridge. Windsurfing off a Pinellas Causeway Bridges and Catwalks In Pinellas County, some of the most heavily used shoreline access facilities are the numerous bridges. Many of these bridges are constructed with a narrow pedestrian walkway, which is sometimes referred to as a catwalk. Some of the bridges are functioning or abandoned railroad bridges or trestles, but most are used for automobile travel. The primary activities associated with these public access facilities are fishing and cast netting. While there are many bridges in the County, some do not